Construction on Trump's border wall to begin by September

US. Customs and Border Protection plans to select four to eight firms in the coming weeks to build the prototypes for President Donald Trump's much-touted border wall, Ronald Vitiello, the agency's acting deputy commissioner, said Tuesday.

The administration's update on its plans for the wall comes amid delays in the bidding process and a seeming lack of political will to fund a continuous barrier along the 2,000-mile Mexico border.

The prototypes — including a reinforced concrete barrier wall as well as one made of an alternative material with see-through capability — will be built in San Diego.

Firms are expected to complete construction by September, within 30 days of their selection, Vitiello said.

More than 200 companies responded to the federal government's two requests for proposals for the border wall in March. Customs and Border Protection had initially planned to award contracts by June 12, with construction beginning by July 21, according to a recent Homeland Security Inspector General's report.

The June 12 report highlighted a history of delays and lack of oversight when it comes to border security.

"Most of DHS's major acquisition programs continue to cost more than expected, take longer to deploy than planned, or deliver less capability than promised," the report said. "DHS sometimes approves moving forward with major acquisition programs without appropriate internal oversight."

Vitiello said Tuesday that the agency has entered the second phase in evaluating contract proposals. He would not say how many companies are in contention, but said it was a "substantial group."

"We are on schedule," he said, but would not specify when the agency would announce the winners
.
The contracting process is moving ahead despite Congress' reluctance to fully fund Trump's pet project and Mexico's expressed unwillingness to pay for it. Congress has set aside $20 million in the current budget for the prototypes, but has not appropriated any other money for the wall.

Trump's 2018 budget calls for $2.6 billion for "high-priority tactical infrastructure and border security technology." Of that amount, $1.6 billion is for "bricks and mortar construction" and $1 billion is for infrastructure and technology, such as roads needed to access construction sites and surveillance equipment.

Trump said last week his wall would pay for itself if it were made of solar panels.

"This way, Mexico will have to pay much less money," Trump said during a rally in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. "A solar wall. It makes sense. Let's see. We are working it out. Solar wall panels."

Vitiello said the agency is partnering with industry to identify "innovative" ways to build a wall along the border, but said he is unaware of any discussions with the White House about a solar-powered wall.

"We are leaning on industry to innovate and use other materials to show us what they think is possible and doable for this purpose," he said.

Vitiello acknowledged that there are at least 130 miles along the border where a wall would be impractical, because of natural barriers such as lakes, rivers and a mountain range.

"There are areas where a wall does not make sense," he said. "This is not just about infrastructure. To have operational control, we also need technology."

Among the immediate priorities will be replacing 14 miles of fencing in San Diego, 20 miles of vehicle barriers in El Paso, and installing 35 new gates in the Rio Grande Valley.

The prototypes will be built on the eastern edge of the secondary fence in San Diego in close proximity to each other, and will act as new barriers, Vitiello said.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/politics/ct-border-wall-construction-september-20170627-story.html

3 Oil and Gas Stocks for Ambitious Investors

After less than a year in the $50-a-barrel range, oil prices are headed back down once more and are now less than $45 a barrel again. This price drop has taken the wind out of the sails of many investors who were betting the oil price recovery was here.

Price recoveries aren't linear. While we may be in a temporary downturn thanks to shale drilling's fast response to growing oil prices, we are still in a period of underinvestment that will likely lead to higher prices and better fortunes for companies down the road. For those ambitious investors, this downturn just keeps the buying window open for a while longer.

With this idea in mind, we asked three of our contributing investors to highlight oil and gas stocks that will allow you to take advantage of this opportunity. Here's why they selected Core Laboratories (NYSE:CLB), Transocean (NYSE:RIG), and Whiting Petroleum (NYSE:WLL).

Going up against a hedge fund giant
Jason Hall (Core Laboratories): In May, billionaire investor David Einhorn caught people off guard when he called Core Laboratories "way overvalued" and went short. Since Einhorn's call, Core's stock price has dropped 11%, and Einhorn says it could fall another 38% before being fairly valued.

Needless to say, it's a pretty ambitious move to bet against someone who has made billions in the market. But at the same time, Einhorn isn't infallible and has made short bets in the past that failed miserably (including shorting Chipotle Mexican Grill years ago).

And I, for one, think that's likely to be the case for his short bet against Core Lab. While his argument that Core is heavily exposed to offshore drilling is true and that it isn't a "secular growth" stock, it remains one of the more important companies in the oil and gas industry when it comes to resource recovery. The bottom line is that Core Lab's innovation and technical expertise have proven to help producers recover more oil and gas more quickly and cheaply, and that's critically important at any oil price.

Furthermore, Core's business may not be as reliant on higher prices as Einhorn thinks, even offshore. Offshore oil is cost-competitive at lower prices -- but high initial development costs have brought offshore drilling to a standstill in recent years. Even with low oil prices, offshore drilling is likely to start recovering in 2018, and that will be a boost for Core.

Looking at the bigger picture, Einhorn could be "right" over the next couple of quarters as oversupply continues to rock the oil market. But I'm betting its share price is much higher a couple of years from now. 

Play the long game
Tyler Crowe (Transocean): Like Jason said, offshore development has quite possibly been the hardest-hit segment of the broader oil and gas industry. Producers, the ones that make the ultimate capital allocation decisions in this business, have elected to either not spend any money at all or to spend that money on faster, easier-to-develop sources like shale. As a result, those oil service and equipment companies that specialize or are heavily weighted to the offshore drilling game have suffered mightily.

Heading into this downturn, Transocean was looking like it could be one of the first casualties of a shake-up in the offshore rig space. Much of its fleet was comprised of older, ineffective rigs that were past their economic lives, and it had a rather sizable debt load that would be hard to handle as revenue dried up.

Thanks to the management of CEO Jeremy Thigpen, though, the company completely transformed itself in the midst of this tough time. The company decided to scrap dozens of older rigs as they rolled off-contract and elected to focus on its fleet of high-specification rigs that can either handle ultra-deepwater depths -- more than 10,000 feet -- or harsh drilling environments like the North Sea. At the same time, it has been chipping away at its debt load and building up a cash pile such that it has about $5 billion in debt.

Today, the company is in a much better position both from a fleet and financial position and is likely ready to handle any more rough seas the oil market will throw it over the next year or two. It is likely going to take a while longer until we see a recovery as shale has kept oil prices low for a while, but this can't last forever and Transocean will be well positioned when demand for offshore rigs comes back.

Massive upside if oil prices come roaring back
Matt DiLallo (Whiting Petroleum): The oil market downturn shook leading Bakken shale oil producer Whiting Petroleum to its core. That's because the collapse in oil prices occurred right after the company unveiled a bold move to buy rival Bakken driller Kodiak Oil and Gas for $6 billion in a deal that made it the region's largest oil producer. That transaction, though, came back to bite the company big time because it added a significant amount of debt to its already stretched balance sheet. That troubling financial situation is a key reason why the stock is down more than 90% over the past few years.

The company, however, spent much of the market downturn shoring up its balance sheet and driving down costs so it could better manage lower oil prices. It has made tremendous progress, having already slashed debt 42% over the past year. Because of that, Whiting was in the position where it could increase spending on new wells this year, which would reverse its production decline. In fact, the company's current budget is double last year's level and should lead to a 23% increase in production by year-end.

There's just one problem with that plan: It requires an average oil price of $55 per barrel to balance cash flow with capex. At the moment, crude is currently $10 a barrel below that level, which means Whiting is on pace to add debt back to its balance sheet. That's not something it can afford to do since the company has $1.5 billion in debt coming due over the next three years. This situation has investors worried that Whiting will continue struggling, which is why the stock has plunged 50% this year.

That said, Whiting Petroleum's stock could bounce back quickly if oil rebounds. That makes it a compelling option for ambitious investors who are bullish on oil prices because they could make a boatload of money if oil cooperates.

https://www.fool.com/investing/2017/06/28/3-oil-and-gas-stocks-for-ambitious-investors.aspx

Huge military display this weekend at NC Transportation Museum

Spencer, NC (WBTV) - A huge display honoring the nation's military will be presented this weekend at the North Carolina Transportation Museum in Spencer.

Military equipment, military vehicles, living history encampments, weapons, a special traveling WWI exhibit, lectures, and the museum’s own exhibits with a military theme will be on display during this weekend’s Salute the Troops: Military Through the Ages event, July 1 and 2.

Additional event offerings include Salisbury National Cemetery and Confederate Prison site trolley tours, a USO-themed dinner and show by the popular Letters From Home: America’s Bombshell Duo, and fireworks.

Event admission is just $6 for adults, $5 for seniors, and $4 for children 3-12. As a tribute to those who have served, the event is free to veterans and active military with a military ID. Members of the N.C. Transportation Museum are also free. Train rides, trolley tours, and the USO show carry additional fees.

Visitors will be greeted by approximately 100 troops set up with living history camps on the museum grounds. WWI, WWII, Vietnam, and even the Civil War will be represented. Living history offerings will include a WWI medical air station, the 82nd Airborne from WWII, Vietnam-era pilots and Civil War militiamen, American soldiers and allies. Discussions will focus on how those soldiers lived and worked, and the weapons of war use throughout history will be displayed.

Vehicles will also be highlighted in the museum’s activity field, including five Vietnam-era helicopters. The military machines scheduled to appear also include WWII-era Jeeps and trucks, a vintage military bicycle, and many more.

The newest “Ride of Pride” truck, featuring artwork that serves as a memorial to the attack on Pearl Harbor, will also appear. Owned by Chief Express, from Seagrove, N.C., the truck features artwork that shows the military base prior to the infamous 1941 attack on the left side, and images of the base in the present day on the right side. The truck was built locally, at the Daimler Trucks facility in Rowan County.

The N.C. in WWI traveling exhibit will also be offered. Created by the N.C. Museum of History, the exhibit of 10 information panels, propaganda posters, and related artifacts is supplemented by local items from the Rowan Museum of History and local collectors. Commemorating the 100th anniversary of the United States’ entry into “the war to end all wars,” the exhibit pays tribute to victory acres, war bonds, and heroic efforts in battle, with a special focus on the contributions of North Carolinians to the war effort.

WWI will also be the focus of guest lecturer LTC (Ret.) Sion H. Harrington III. His presentation, “North Carolina and the Great War, 1917-1918,” takes place in the Bob Julian Roundhouse at 1 p.m. each event day.

Master bugler Jay Callaham will discuss the military connections to an instrument that called many to battle. Callaham will tell the true history of “Taps” and discuss the history of the bugle as a military signal. In addition to his 25-year career in the military, Callaham has performed “Taps” at numerous military funerals, and has even sounded the call at Arlington National Cemetery, a rare honor.

The museum’s own military-related artifacts and exhibits will also be displayed. The U.S. Army Hospital car, which served in the Korean conflict, will be on display in the Bob Julian Roundhouse. The Merci Train 40&8 car, one of 49 such railroad cars given to each state in the U.S. and the District of Columbia by a grateful French nation following WWII, is also displayed. The lesser-known military connections of the #544 Seaboard Air Line locomotive and the Piedmont Airlines DC-3 will also be told.

Upgrade options to the event include Salisbury National Cemetery and Confederate Prison Site trolley tours. When built in 1861, the Confederate Prison was designed to hold 2500, but by 1864, there were more than 10,000 prisoners incarcerated. Some 3700 prisoners died between October of 1864 and February of 1865.

Trolley tours are $18/person and are offered at 10:00, 11:30am, and 1:00pm Saturday and at 12:30, and 2:00 p.m. Sunday.

Saturday evening will feature a special additional event. Letters From Home: America’s Bombshell Duo recreates a classic USO-style performance, with dazzling tap dancing, memorable songs, and a focus on patriotism. Offered at 6:30 p.m. in the recently opened Back Shop, visitors will enjoy dinner and the show for $25/person or $40/couple.

Fireworks will conclude the Saturday night performance, happening around 9:15, at the conclusion of Letters From Home. The general public can enjoy Saturday evening’s fireworks show from the museum parking area at no charge.

Salute the Troops: Military through the Ages will be held from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, July 1 and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday, July 2.

http://www.wbtv.com/story/35766461/huge-military-display-this-weekend-at-nc-transportation-museum

EPA, Army Corps Seek To Rescind Clean Water Rule

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Army Corps of Engineers released a proposal on June 27 to repeal the 2015 Clean Water Rule, the latest move by the Trump administration to unwind environmental regulations put in place under former President Barack Obama.

The agencies are working to rescind the rule, known as the Waters of the U.S. or WOTUS rule, and reinstate the language of the rule before it was changed in 2015.

The rule updated the federal Clean Water Act to define what waterways—including streams, rivers and other bodies—can be regulated by the federal government, stirring anger by the agriculture and energy industries, which said it gave regulators too much authority.

"We are taking significant action to return power to the states and provide regulatory certainty to our nation's farmers and businesses," EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt said.

The Clean Water Act, passed in 1972 and last amended in 1987, is intended to protect the nation's waters from pollution.

In February, President Donald Trump said during the signing of an executive order calling for a review of the rule that the act should apply only to navigable waters that affect interstate commerce.

The American Petroleum Institute (API), an oil and natural gas trade group, said it applauds the Trump administration’s action to rescind the “harmful WOTUS rule” and promote energy jobs.

“Today’s action by the administration will help spur U.S. job creation by providing the regulatory certainty needed to encourage investment and advance America’s energy leadership,” Erik Milito, API upstream and industry operations group director, said in a statement. “This rule would have imposed burdensome and costly regulations, and stifled energy production with little to no environmental benefit."

The attempt to change the statutory definition of “waters of the United States” also represents a broad and unwarranted expansion of federal jurisdiction inconsistent with Supreme Court precedent, according to API.

Some lawmakers and officials from states with large rural areas also praised the move.

“Out-of-state D.C. bureaucrats shouldn’t impose regulations that hurt Montana farmers, ranchers and landowners,” said the state's Republican senator, Steve Daines.

The National Association of State Departments of Agriculture welcomed the change, saying the 2015 rule was flawed and "fraught" with procedural issues, "making it necessary to start over with a new rule that protects clean water and respects state regulatory authority."

Environmental groups criticized the move, saying it ignores public input and would put parts of the country like the Midwestern Great Lakes at risk.

"This foolish rollback of clean water standards rejects years of work building stakeholder input and scientific data support, and it imperils the progress for safe clean drinking water in the Midwest,” said Howard Learner, executive director of the Environmental Law & Policy Center.

Others said the rollback will lead to pollution in some of the country's most sensitive wetland areas.

"Revoking the clean water rule will open the door to the pollution and bulldozing of some of America's most important wetlands," said Kierán Suckling, executive director at the Center for Biological Diversity

The rule had been placed on hold in 2015 by a federal court appeals court.

http://www.oilandgasinvestor.com/epa-army-corps-seek-rescind-clean-water-rule-1640146#p=full

Worker injured at home under construction in Coventry

A construction worker was injured Monday in some sort of accident at a home that's being built in Coventry.

The worker became partially pinned when a portion of the cement foundation apparently collapsed on him just after 10:30 a.m. The house is in under construction in a development off Victory Highway on Victory Falls Road.

“Just above the collapse, an excavator from the residential home construction site was precariously hanging on a slope above the trapped victim,” police noted in a press release. “It was quickly determined that this excavator would need to be stabilized before rescue personnel could attempt a recovery.”

An excavator was called to the scene to stabilize the hanging excavator, with first responders lifting the concrete off the man.

“We would like to thank D’Ambra Corp for the volunteer response to assist in this rescue,” police said.

A medical helicopter picked up the injured worker and transported him to Rhode Island Hospital, where he is being treated.

The owner and developer of the land, SKJR Properties, told NBC 10 the injured man worked for a subcontractor doing drainage work, but did not identify the subcontractor.

At last check, police said the injured worker was stable.

No other injuries were reported.

http://turnto10.com/news/local/worker-injured-at-home-under-construction-in-coventry

Charlotte construction workers, advocacy groups call for reform in industry

On the heels of a recently released report that studied issues facing those employed in construction, Charlotte construction workers and advocacy groups are calling for policy to encourage and enforce protections for workers on job sites.

The Workers Defense Project, Partnership for Working Families and the University of Illinois at Chicago surveyed 1,435 construction workers in major construction markets in the southern U.S. — Charlotte, Atlanta, Dallas, Houston, Miami and Nashville, Tenn.

The report, "Build a Better South," said that wage theft, limited opportunities for career advancement, health and safety concerns, and a lack of employment benefits were described by construction workers as common challenges in the six markets researched.

Members of Action NC, Partnership for Working Families, Justice and Respect in the Reinforcing Industry Coalition, Workers Defense Project, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, and the American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations spoke at Charlotte City Council's citizen's forum following a news conference on Monday evening.

http://www.bizjournals.com/charlotte/news/2017/06/27/charlotte-construction-workers-advocacy-groups.html

The new French government has sought to further burnish its green credentials with the announcement it is to stop granting licences for new oil and gas exploration.

In his first major intervention since Emmanuel Macron’s election victory, the ecological transition minister, Nicolas Hulot, told the broadcaster BFMTV there would be “no new exploration licences for hydrocarbons”.

Hulot said the government would extend Macron’s promised moratorium on fracking projects to cover all oil and gas exploration. He also hinted that the government would increase taxes on diesel and look to streamline decision-making on environmental issues so they could be made “faster”.

Hulot faces a daunting in-tray to deliver on Macron’s wide-ranging environmental manifesto, which promised a sharp increase in renewables’ investment, a huge renovation programme to improve the efficiency of French homes, and an acceleration of the deployment of zero-emission vehicles.

The comments came as Hulot and Macron met the former Californian governor and climate change campaigner Arnold Schwarzenegger to discuss plans for a new global pact to give people a mechanism for securing environmental justice.

In a short video posted on Twitter, both Macron and Schwarzenegger aimed a swipe at President Trump as they vowed to work together to “make the planet great again”.

Macron said a new pact that builds on international human right legislation could help “move on to a new stage after the Paris accord”. The new pact could be presented to the UN as early as this September, Macron said.

The proposals were backed by the former French foreign minister and the chair of the Paris summit, Laurent Fabius. “We already have two international [human rights] pacts ... The idea is to create a third, for a third generation of rights – environmental rights,” he said.

Schwarzenegger said support for the proposals should cross political lines. “It is absolutely imperative that we not make it a political issue. This is not the right versus the left because there is no liberal air or conservative air. We all breathe the same air. There is no liberal water or conservative water, we all drink the same water.”

The proposed covenants would build on the UN’s earlier human rights covenants covering, social, economic, and cultural rights, and civil and political rights.

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/jun/26/macron-meets-schwarzenegger-vows-stop-oil-gas-licences

As Uber arrives in Alaska, towns without taxis have new transportation option

In visits to the Lower 48, Alaskans may have caught a ride in an Uber or Lyft car.

Now, people around the state can use the ride-sharing companies at home.

This month, Alaska became the latest state to make way for the transportation apps.

In small towns where taxi service has struggled to survive, the companies could fill a need.

If you’re catching an Uber in New York or L.A., you might expect a sleek black sedan.

Haines resident and aspiring Uber driver Alex Stock has a Ford Super Duty truck.

“It’s Alaska, what do you expect?” Stock said.

Alaska Gov. Bill Walker gave ride-sharing companies like Uber and Lyft the green light to operate in the state earlier this month.

He signed into law House Bill 132, which permits transportation network companies in the state.

Uber did operate in Alaska for a short time a few years ago, but it shut down after a dispute over labor rules.

Uber and Lyft’s services are based on a smartphone app that connects passengers and drivers.

Drivers are considered independent contractors and they use their own cars.

For now, Lyft is only in Juneau, Anchorage and Fairbanks. But Uber said it should be available wherever there are interested drivers.

“I’m gonna sign up, see how it goes,” Stock said. “I think it’ll be a good way to supplement my income.”

Stock runs a scooter rental business that caters to cruise ship tourists.

He’s getting involved in Uber for the same reason he started the scooter business: Haines has no taxi service or public transportation.

“That was probably the biggest concern I started hearing from tourists,” Stock said. “I said, ‘Well you can rent a scooter from me. Other than that, I don’t really have an answer for you.’ Now, this seems to be the answer.”

“If Uber would be able to provide the same level of service that a taxicab company could provide, or better, then I would certainly encourage the community to go that route,” said Haines Borough Manager Debra Schnabel.

Schnabel said taxi companies haven’t lasted here because of the high cost of insurance required for commercial vehicles under borough code.

It doesn’t look like Uber drivers will have that burden.

HB 132 essentially disallows local governments from imposing regulations on ride-sharing companies.

Municipalities can levy a sales tax, but if they want to go beyond that, the law requires a public vote.

Alaska Municipal League Director Kathie Wasserman is frustrated by the lack of local control.

“The Legislature, for whatever reason, promised an out-of state-company that ‘oh yeah, if you don’t want regulation to come to our state, we’ll exempt you.’ What does that say to every other business in the state?” Wasserman said. “I mean that just seems crazy.”

The City of Juneau was also opposed to the bill’s limited options for local regulation.

But there are some restrictions.

Not just anyone can drive for Uber or Lyft. Prospective drivers must pass a federal background check, which screens for driving and criminal history. They have to be 21 or older. And cars must undergo an inspection and cannot be more than 12 years old.

Soon-to-be Uber driver Stock is still waiting on the background check. He downloaded the vehicle inspection form, which he’ll take to a local mechanic. He hopes to be driving for Uber by the end of the week.

When asked how he plans to maintain a five-star Uber rating (passengers and drivers can rate each other), Stock said he expected people would just be happy to be able to get an Uber ride in Haines.

And, he’ll probably wash his truck before picking up his first fare.

http://www.ktoo.org/2017/06/26/uber-arrives-alaska-towns-without-taxis-new-transportation-option/

Trump calls for 'energy dominance' as US oil and gas exports keep rising

In yet another branded White House initiative, it's Energy Week. President Trump will be focused on American "energy dominance," and touting the boom in U.S. fossil fuels and plans to support and increase energy exports. A ban on exporting U.S. oil and gas was lifted under the Obama administration. Energy companies may appreciate less oversight and more access under Trump, yet their activity is driven by markets over Washington moves.

https://www.marketplace.org/2017/06/26/sustainability/trump-calls-energy-dominance-us-oil-and-gas-exports-keep-rising

As Oil and Gas Faces a ‘Last Cycle,’ a Generational Divide Emerges Over Its Future

  The oil and gas industry is facing its “last cycle,” according to consultancy Ernst & Young.

What does that mean? It's a “time when energy abundance, driven by technology, creates a permanent oversupply that not only keeps prices low but also allows consumers to make new choices about their energy usage."

In this new world, consumer perceptions are critical, writes E&Y in a new report. While most Americans still see fossil fuels playing an important role for decades to come, only about one in three trust the fossil industry -- and the younger the generation, the higher the distrust of the industry.

Those are some of the top-level findings laid out in the report, the first in a series to explore U.S. consumer attitudes toward the oil and gas industries. It's based on polling of consumers of all ages, as well as oil and gas executives, starting in early 2017. And like its subject, the findings are filled with seeming contradictions.

About four-fifths of adults and three out of four teenagers say the fossil industry is important to the national economy, for example. But only 37 percent of adults and 33 percent of teens “trust the industry to do the right thing.”

And not surprisingly, few people want oil and gas industries to set up shop in their neighborhoods or communities.

  “Energy’s perception rating is respectable but precarious. Its value to consumers is based largely on necessity, a weak attribute for long-term appreciation and support,” the report noted. And “overall, consumers believe the industry is good for society, though they still see it as a problem causer, not a problem solver.”

About 40 percent of consumers ranked their perception of the oil and gas industries as positive versus negative, which is about the same ratings received by the health care industry, and better than those for investment bankers or pharmaceutical companies. Public perception is better than most oil and gas executives believe, the report noted.

Still, the industry and the public disconnect in other areas.

For example, consumers have a much more positive view of natural gas than of oil, nuclear power or coal, the report found -- a likely result of the industry’s “success leaning heavily on technology to reframe perception, especially with the advent of the North American shale revolution.”

But only 8 percent of respondents “think of natural gas first when they think of the energy industry,” the report noted, compared to 18 percent who first think of oil, and 40 percent who think of power plants.

So what form of energy do Americans see most favorably? The answer -- by a long shot -- is renewables. Nearly 80 percent of respondents in all generations said they have a positive perception of renewable energy.

  There are important distinctions between adults and teens in their respective views of the energy industry’s future role, although these are also fraught with contradictions. For example, the energy industry gets a higher net positivity rating among millennials and “Generation Z” respondents than among baby boomers, indicating that age isn’t the best predictor of attitudes on the subject.

But teens are also far more likely to believe that oil and gas won’t play an important role 100 years from now compared to adults. And when it comes to the oil and gas industry’s societal value, positive perceptions drop from 63 percent for the “silent generation” and 38 percent for baby boomers to a mere 3 percent for millennials, and a negative 14 percent for Generation Z.

The silent competitor in all of this is renewable energy. For example, when asked whether oil and gas should be the main source of energy in their lives, most consumers and executives alike chose the middle option -- that is, only “until cleaner energy can replace them.”

Nearly one in three consumers said oil and gas shouldn’t be the primary energy resource in their lives at all.

Ernst & Young sums up its cross-generational findings in a chart that combines demographics and energy resources, showing that most teens identify solar and wind energy as “their generation’s” energy, with oil and gas relegated to their parents' generation, and coal to their grandparents'.

  Underlying this analysis of public perception is Ernst & Young’s thesis of the “last cycle” for the oil and gas industries.

“There is a compelling argument to be made that this might just be the oil industry’s last cycle, due to abundant supply and an overall -- and seemingly permanent -- slowing of global demand," wrote E&Y.

This, in turn, will “force energy companies to develop new corporate cultures, customer-facing philosophies and everyday business practices that are aligned with the public’s desire for a more environmentally conscious, more consumer-oriented industry,” the report notes.

The energy industry's messaging -- and investments -- will need to adapt to these stark generational differences.

https://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/advice-for-an-oil-gas-industry-facing-its-last-cycle

Qatar's Emir Reportedly Meets With ExxonMobil CEO

The emir of Qatar met with ExxonMobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM) chairman and CEO Darren Woods in Doha on June 24 for talks on "cooperation," state news agency QNA reported, following a rift between four Gulf states and Qatar that has raised worries about energy supplies.

Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt on June 19 cut ties with Qatar, accusing the country of supporting extremism. Qatar denies the allegations.

QNA said the Emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, met with Woods and ExxonMobil Qatar General Manager Alistair Routledge at the Al-Bahar Palace

"During the meeting, they discussed bilateral cooperation relations and means to develop them in addition to the latest developments in the energy sector," the agency said.

Qatar and ExxonMobil have had development agreements for more than a decade, with ExxonMobil helping Qatar to become the world's largest LNG exporter. ExxonMobil, working with government-controlled energy company Qatar Petroleum, has invested in LNG-processing plants, transport ships and related infrastructure.

ExxonMobil said earlier this month that production and exports of LNG from Qatar have not been affected by the row.

The growing diplomatic dispute has raised concerns about global access to Qatar's LNG, especially after some regional ports in the Gulf said they would not accept Qatari-flagged vessels.

http://www.oilandgasinvestor.com/qatars-emir-reportedly-meets-exxonmobil-ceo-1639481#p=full

Hyperloop Transportation Technologies Partners With South Korea

Hyperloop Transportation Technologies has announced new partnerships with South Korean entities as it moves forward on its plans to implement its patented technologies in South Korea.

The company signed agreements with the South Korean government’s department of technological innovation and infrastructure, the Korea Institute of Civil Engineering and Building Technology, as well as with engineering research school Hanyang University, according to a statement released Tuesday.

Playa Vista-based Hyperloop Transportation Technologies was founded in 2013 after Tesla Motors and SpaceX Chief Executive Elon Musk released into the public domain a white paper detailing a theoretical vacuum transportation tube, or hyperloop, that could transport passengers at 800 mph. The entrepreneur opened the conversation but left the building up to others.

Hyperloop Transportation is one of the companies trying to make Musk’s vision a reality. Downtown’s Hyperloop One and Arrivo are two of its local competitors.

Hyperloop Transportation is creating and licensing technologies and has commenced construction of the world’s first passenger Hyperloop capsule, according to the firm.

Chief Executive Dirk Ahlborn said South Korea represents the company’s first commercial customer. The country has completed initial research and is now working on the implementation of the transportation system.

The latest agreements include licensing and research development of a nationwide tube infrastructure, a full-scale testbed, licensing and development of tube technology, and the co-development of safety standards and regulation for the Hyperloop system.

“When you’re building a completely new mode of transportation, the most difficult part is getting regulations approved,” Ahlborn said. “If you don’t have the government actively supporting you, it could take decades to move something commercially, so it’s a really important milestone for us when we work with a new government.”

http://labusinessjournal.com/news/2017/jun/20/hyperloop-transportation-technologies-partners-sou/

One View of the Fall of Oil & Gas

I took Zachary Shahan’s article “What Happens When The Oil Economy Collapses?” as a bit of a challenge. It poses a question that has many potential answers. Some possibilities, however, would be easy to miss. What I actually think might happen may be one of these.

Many people have expressed an expectation that with peak oil, depleted resources would reduce production in the face of rising demand; this would lead to rising prices; and this would force some people to give up using oil, possibly by simply going without and suffering. The law of supply and demand would keep prices high in a market with declining volumes, because the loss of the supply would lead the falling demand.

Peak oil has recently turned out to be very different. Prices dropped because declines in demand actually preceded declines in production. And the result is a market most people, possibly even OPEC leaders, have found unpredictable.

We should also bear in mind one other thing that can be less than obvious but may play a large role in the overall picture. It is that a small loss of revenue can sometimes produce large financial losses, putting profits into negative territory. In a stressed company, this can end in complete collapse.

The possibility I would like to run by readers is this: 

• Demand for fossil fuels falls due to a number of factors. Increases in oil prices only result in further declines in demand, as customers defect to cheaper electric transport and renewable energy. The result is that prices cannot stay up for long. This situation seems to be the case now.
  
• Production of crude oil falls on lower prices. The result is greatly lowered revenues, leaving oil companies vulnerable, but without necessarily increasing prices. Some companies go out of business, but their competitors do not profit from this because demand continues to fall.
  
• Production losses are further driven by failure to develop new wells. A CleanTechnica article, “Global Oil Discoveries & Oil Projects Fall To Record Lows In 2016,” addresses the lack of exploration and development. It paints a shocking picture of a deeply stressed market.
  
• With declining productivity, equipment runs less efficiently. Production overheads reduce profits, possibly into negative territory. This applies to both producers and suppliers.
  
• Companies that transport and process petrochemicals are put under stress because of falling revenues resulting from lower production. Many of these also go out of business. In particular, new pipelines may never be paid off, because their design was based on unreasonably optimistic economic models.
  
• The plastics industry, facing increasing regulations because of ocean pollution, reduces production of non-biodegradable plastics and reduces its use of oil.
  
• Local dealers of gasoline, oil, and natural gas have supply problems because of the unstable market. Many are tied to specific producers that might go out of business. When they need products, some have to scramble but are unable to find supplies. If stressed local companies are unable to service customers, it can drive them out of business. Some of those that stay in business experience loss of revenues on falling sales. This produces losses of profits, even if retail prices rise.
  
• Failures in the fossil fuels industries make it increasingly difficult to find financing. Financing sources are not willing to provide money when assets could become stranded. This leads to more failures.
  
• At the same time, taxes on fossil fuels, intended to slow their sales to slow climate change, prove insufficient as temperatures continue a relentless rise from carbon dioxide already in the atmosphere. This leads to pushes for higher taxes as people are hurt by the effects of rising temperatures. This may begin as early as this summer, depending on the weather.
  
• Those local dealers who remain in business cannot meet demand consistently, because they are overextended in an unstable market. Customers who are able to pay for oil and gas have to buy at a premium because supplies are unreliable. This results in increasing customer defection to alternate sources of energy. And this makes things more difficult for everyone who deals with petrochemicals, right back to the well head.
  
• Governments, non-profit organizations, and business of nearly all descriptions defect from the use of fossil fuels. This is partly to fight pollution and climate change, but partly to save money and increase energy security.
  
• Disruptive technologies cut into fossil fuels sales. Wind and solar power are already disruptive. The combination of solar with battery backup is becoming highly competitive with natural gas, the least expensive fossil fuel for producing electricity. CleanTechnica’s article “New Solar Price Record: Tucson Utility Inks Deal For Solar Power That Costs Less Than 3 Cents Per Kilowatt-Hour!” points out the disruptive potential. Another article pointing to this is,“Tony Seba: By 2030, 95% of People Won’t Own a Private Car — Automaker Death Spiral Coming.”
  
• Lawsuits come against the fossil fuels companies because they have engaged in deceit, at the expenses of human health, human life, the environment, and the reputations of competing technologies. An article at desmogblog.com, “US Senators: Heartland Institute Mailings to Grade School Science Teachers ‘Possibly Fraudulent,’” spoke to the pervasive nature of the fraud. It related to attempts by the Heartland Institute to influence school children to deny climate science. But, in fact, legal actions may be for criminal activities – possibly including charges for crimes against humanity. As an example of how widely different views of the same thing are, I also would mention a pair of articles providing data on the same subject that appeared only days apart. One appeared in CleanTechnica, “Solar & Wind Costs To Plummet And Global Emissions To Peak In 2026, Forecasts BNEF.” It said that BNEF predicted wind and solar power would produce 34% of our electric generation in 2040. The other article appeared at The Daily Caller, “Solar & Wind Will Provide Only 2.9% Of World’s Energy By 2040.” Such material may leave a reader wondering who to believe. I would point out to such a person that BNEF gets its money from investment clients who are looking for correct information and will go elsewhere if they are not satisfied. By contrast, The Daily Caller data comes from an organization with a proven record of bad projections. The material from the Alt-Right media makes me think of Baghdad Bob, standing on a Baghdad street, talking about how the Iraqi army was driving out the Americans, while in the background, American tanks were driving along unhindered, only a few hundred yards away.
  
• The ability of the fossil fuels industries to buy the good opinions of legislative bodies fails, because they are running out of money. This ultimately leads to the collapse of the Alt-Right wing of the Republican Party, with the remainder of the party discredited or not, depending on how quickly they can detach themselves from that group. 

A short statement of what I expect is that a collapse of the oil and gas industry could see the price of crude oil depressed at the same time that the prices of retail oil and gas kept high, with no one in the middle making much money. And the political ramifications would be profound.

The cost to the economy of the failure of the fossil fuels industries could easily dwarf that of any previous economic turmoil that has ever taken place, including the Great Depression. There are a number of reasons why I think this type of collapse in the oil and gas market could be nearly at hand.

Nevertheless, there is hope. A new era for renewable energy seems to be at hand as well.

https://cleantechnica.com/2017/06/19/one-view-fall-oil-gas/

Legislators lock themselves out of transportation bucks

It took a constitutional amendment to secure the state’s transportation money

The best way to keep someone from spending money is to make sure they can’t get their hands on it.

It’s a tried-and-true philosophy, put into practice recently in the hope of keeping Delaware’s roads and byways in good repair.

With no fanfare, the General Assembly May 18 approved an amendment to Delaware’s constitution that should preserve financial support for the state’s roads, bridges, and highways. The amendment freezes the income so it can’t be spent for anything else.

The so-called “lockbox” legislation was at the top of Secretary of Transportation Jennifer Cohan’s list of things to get done when she was appointed in January 2015.

“It was part of a bigger picture,” Cohan said. “The priority was to get a sustainable revenue package passed, a responsible one that was not aimed at just increasing revenue but protecting the Transportation Trust Fund.”

It was the most pressing need DelDOT faced at the time, Cohan added.

An ongoing problem

Established by legislators in 1987, the fund was ”... to be the funding mechanism for transportation projects in our state,” DelDOT Director of Community Relations Charles “CR” McLeod said.

But it didn’t work out that way.

“There were instances in the past where, to help balance the general fund budget, it was easy to transfer money out of the TTF and use it for nontransportation expenses,” McLeod said. “There was no prohibitive measure to keep funds from being transferred in or out.”

Rep. Greg Lavelle, R-Sharpley, spearheaded the effort amend the constitution. The idea the General Assembly was balancing the state budget by siphoning cash from infrastructure projects grated on him.

“Expenses were put into the trust fund that weren’t intended to be there in the first place,” he said. “It all snowballed. Eventually, all of DelDOT’s expenses came out of the trust fund.”

The impetus behind the lockbox was that any revenue put into the trust fund absolutely, positively had to be used for construction.

The fund receives revenue from the federal government, and state road tolls, Delaware’s gas tax and Department of Motor Vehicles fees. With the economic boom of the late ’90s and early 2000s, things were going well, but as the recession hit and the state spending began outstripping revenues, legislators tapped it for DelDOT’s everyday operating expenses.

A task force condemnation

In 2011, a 24-member task force found Delaware might be unable to build new roads or pay for upkeep. Looking forward through 2023, the group concluded total spending for transportation expenses would total about $12.4 billion over that decade.

As it stood, the trust fund would meet 70 percent of that figure, the group said.

“The result of that imbalance, if not corrected, will be either the elimination of all new capital projects by 2017 or severe reductions in DelDOT’s Core Program, resulting in an accelerated deterioration of Delaware’s transportation infrastructure,” according to a press release issued with the report.

The report noted the poor condition of roads and highways could drive potential new businesses and investors to other states.

Over the next three years, however, little was done. Gov. Jack Markell’s 2014 proposal to increase the state’s gas tax by 10 cents -- a suggestion made by the task force -- ran full force into an election-year wall.

Speaking during his State of the State address in January 2015, Markell then announced his support for the “lockbox” idea.

By late June 2015, political squabbling threatened 45 project proposals and funding to maintain existing roads. Cohan warned then that legislative indecision was hampering DelDOT’s ability to plan for the future.

However, as the General Assembly was barreling toward a midnight June 30, 2015, budget deadline, legislators approved a last-minute package of additional borrowing and toll and fee increases intended to raise an additional $55 million.

In a show of bipartisan bonhomie before they went home for the year, Republicans and Democrats took up a Lavelle-sponsored bill that would make the TTF almost invulnerable to legislative meddling.

The legislation, SB 166, was a constitutional amendment. It expressly forbade using TTF money for anything other than transportation projects. Overcoming that restriction would require a supermajority vote in both houses of the legislature. The override would have to be proposed in legislation outside the state budget process.

Both houses suspended the normal rules of conduct and in a matter of minutes unanimously passed the bill through the Senate during an early morning July 1 special session. It made it through the House equally as fast that morning, garnering only one no vote.

Changes still needed

The rules for amending Delaware’s Constitution of 1897 mandates the proposal pass two separate General Assembly sessions. It requires two separate bills, but with the exact same wording, and it must pass each chamber by a two-thirds vote.

Efforts to pass the second bill were not nearly as frenetic as the first.

Lavelle introduced SB 20 Jan. 24; in April it easily garnered 19 Senate votes (of 21) and 37-4 in favor in the House May 18.

The amendment went into effect the same day; amending the state constitution does not require gubernatorial approval.

Currently, the TTF has a $908 million reserve, but even though the money cannot be touched by legislators, about one-third still is earmarked for noncapital spending.

“We hope that will change,” Cohan said. “Every dollar we spend on operations is a dollar we can’t spend on capital.”

Lavelle hopes to see that happen as well, but with his fellow legislators deadlocked on the Fiscal Year 2018 budget and only nine days to work out a compromise plan, he doesn’t expect that to occur anytime soon.

Still, Lavelle’s constitutional change has given Cohan some hope when it comes to keeping her department in front of needed improvements to highways and roads.

“I think that the lock box is a beautiful thing and I think it will help protect us going forward,” she said.

http://www.milfordbeacon.com/news/20170621/legislators-lock-themselves-out-of-transportation-bucks

Young people don’t want to work for oil companies

The bright minds of tomorrow want to pursue careers at Tesla, not ExxonMobil.

Sixty-two percent of teens ages 16 to 19 say a career in oil and gas is unappealing, according to a survey of 1,200 young Americans that was released this week by EY. That includes 39% who say the industry is very unappealing.

The numbers are a bit better among Millennials. Forty-five percent of those aged 20 to 35 said they are attracted to oil and gas jobs, while 44% are not. The poll asked respondents to rate how appealing a career in the industry is for them.

The findings suggest Big Oil’s environmental challenges and boom-to-bust nature have created a negative stigma that will make it difficult to attract talent in the future.

Younger generations “see the industry’s careers as unstable, blue-collar, difficult, dangerous and harmful to society,” the EY report concluded.

For instance, two out of three teens polled believe the oil and gas industry causes problems, rather than solves them.

More alarming for oil execs, young people “question the longevity of the industry, as they view natural gas and oil as their parents’ fuels.”

Not surprisingly, young people want to work for the energy companies of the future. Two-thirds of those polled said that a job working in green energy sounds appealing. That’s good news for the likes of Tesla, which is the leading electric-car maker and also sells solar panels through its recently-acquired SolarCity business.

Looking for work in green energy has been a smart choice lately, since solar job growth expanded last year 17 times faster than the total U.S. economy. Going forward, renewable energy should benefit from an anticipated surge of investment, including from traditional oil and gas companies. Big Oil may need to spend $350 billion on wind and solar between now and 2035, Wood MacKenzie recently projected.

Jeff Bush, president of oil and gas recruiting firm CSI Recruiting, agrees that the industry has a perception problem, especially among those who don’t have friends or family in the industry.

“It’s perceived as low-tech or out of vogue as far as the environment goes,” Bush said.

Concerns about Big Oil’s role in global warming make sense since younger people would have the most to lose from rising sea levels that many scientists say are caused by carbon emissions.

These worries could help explain why natural gas, which is viewed as a cleaner fuel than oil, polls better. Just 18% of teens have a negative view of natural gas, compared with 37% who view oil unfavorably.

Of course, Exxon, Chevron, BP and other companies traditionally thought of as oil companies also make a great deal of money from natural gas.

The environment isn’t the only reason why young people seem to be shying away from careers in oil and gas. The industry has a long history of booms that create tons of jobs, but end in tears and pink slips. That notorious reputation was solidified during a recent oil crash that caused dozens of bankruptcy filings and an estimated 200,000 job cuts.

“It’s become a tough place to start a career right now. There are kids who went to good schools, got good grades and yet they don’t have a job. That’s going to spook anybody,” said Bush.

The American Petroleum Institute, an oil lobby, did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the polls findings.

Now that the oil industry is (mostly) on the comeback trail thanks to resilient shale oil production, it will likely have many positions to fill. But that task could be complicated by concerns about job security and the environment, the poll indicates.

“There is high cause for concern about the ability to recruit and retain employees of the future. They’re going to need to change the perception,” said Rachel Everaard, an oil and gas principal at EY.

http://kfor.com/2017/06/21/young-people-dont-want-to-work-for-oil-companies/

Colorado Allows Oil And Gas Drillers To Abandon Old Pipes In Place. Should They?

No one knows how many thousands of miles of abandoned oil and gas pipelines are buried in Colorado — or where they are. The system is described as a “spaghetti bowl” of underground twisting and turning lines, with some active and many others inactive or abandoned.

Colorado has always let drillers leave pipes in the ground when they’re done with them.

When Lance Astrella heard that a flowline from an old gas well was implicated in a deadly explosion in Firestone in April, he wasn’t particularly surprised.

“It’s extremely unfortunate that you have to have a tragedy before people focus on things,” says Astrella, an attorney who used to represent oil and gas companies. “But to me, the flowlines have been a problem, particularly in Colorado, but perhaps in other states as well, for quite a period of time.”

In Firestone, the flowline found less than 200 feet from the home that exploded was supposed to have been abandoned in place and capped. But it was still connected to the well.

Fire investigators say when Anadarko Petroleum turned the well back on, gas flowed through it into the soil and into the nearby basement. The gas ignited and destroyed the home and killed two men inside.

Astrella now represents landowners in Colorado and says this underground maze of abandoned pipes is more than a safety concern, “it basically provides the opportunity to hide pollution.” He says if drillers were required to dig up old pipes, they could find leaks undetected for years.

“There are a lot of leaks in pipelines and old tanks and so forth. That is not unusual at all. So it’s not a theoretical problem, it’s a real problem.”

It’s unknown how big of a problem it is. CPR News requested an interview with the Colorado Oil and Gas Association, the trade group for the drilling industry. They referred us instead to the state.

Matt Lepore, director of the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission, says as long as operators follow the state’s rules, “there’s very little risk, very little potential harm of having empty, abandoned, plugged, capped lines in the subsurface.”

Responding to Astrella’s point on pollution, if abandoned pipelines are leading to pollution, the state could toughen its rules, he says, but they’d need to study that first.

“That kind of analysis would really need to be done before there was some kind of sweeping new rule or statute.”

Lepore says regulators are having discussions to develop new rules following the Firestone explosion; in particular, requirements to at least map flowlines. But even if drillers share complete flowline maps with the state, a question remains. Should they still be allowed to leave pipes in the ground when they’re done with them?

Josh Joswick, a former La Plata County Commissioner who’s now with the environmental group Earthworks says “in a word, no. It’s not a good policy idea.”

Decades ago, it was easier to leave flowlines in the ground, Joswick says. But that was back “when you were just going through beet fields and hay fields or corn fields or whatever a farmer might be growing up there.”

Now, Joswick points out that home developers are digging basements in that crop land. Weld County has added nearly 40,000, mostly single family housing units since 2000, according to Census data.

Keeping track of the pipelines underground in Colorado comes with another complicating factor. Drilling companies frequently buy and sell wells and pipelines so that can make their ownership confusing, especially for homebuilders.

Gregory Miedema of the the Home Builders Association of Northern Colorado says they rely on “locator services and whatever record we can find.”

For him, it’s easy to imagine that someone on a four-ton excavator digging a basement foundation could hit a small 1-inch flowline and never notice it. But in the case of Firestone, authorities say the home developers appear to have been aware of the pipeline and believed it was abandoned and capped properly.

That confusion probably wouldn’t have happened in Broomfield. For 15 years, the city has required removal of flowlines when they’re no longer in use. Broomfield is the only place in Colorado we could find with that requirement.

A former oil and gas industry employee himself, current Broomfield Mayor Randy Ahrens says it’s a regulation that should spread.

“I certainly think that could be mandated by the state pretty easy,” he says.

One interesting wrinkle is that Broomfield puts the onus for pipeline removal on the housing developers. When they build a house, they have to take out the lines. Ahrens explains that’s because when the city created the policy, some of the oil and gas operators that had owned underground lines, were no longer in business.

The question of ownership may be a challenge going forward. There’s been drilling development on the Front Range for more than a century but by the time there are problems with abandoned wells and flowlines, many of the operators are long gone.

https://www.cpr.org/news/story/colorado-allows-oil-and-gas-drillers-to-abandoned-old-pipes-in-place-should-they

GE Transportation Signs $575M Deal With Egyptian Railway

ERIE, Pa. (AP) — GE Transportation says it has signed a $575 million deal with Egypt's national railway system to provide 100 locomotives.

The Erie Times-News reports (http://bit.ly/2sKXEv4 ) union leaders are hopeful the deal will be good news for current workers and those recently laid off in Erie, Pennsylvania, where most of the company's international locomotives are built.

The head of the union representing GE's Erie employees says foreign contracts sometimes require some work to be done in the destination country, but it's not clear if that's the case with the Egypt deal. Union President Scott Slawson says the financing is being done through a Canadian bank, which could signal that most of the work will be in the U.S.

Details of the agreement have yet to be finalized.

https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/pennsylvania/articles/2017-06-20/ge-transportation-signs-575m-deal-with-egyptian-railway

Oil and gas producer EQT to buy Rice Energy in $6.7 billion deal

U.S. oil and gas company EQT Corp (EQT.N) said on Monday it would buy Rice Energy (RICE.N) for $6.7 billion in its biggest deal ever, as it looks to expand its natural gas business.

Rice Energy's shares surged more than 24 percent to $24.47 in early trading, but below the $27.05 per share offered by EQT. EQT's shares were down 9.4 percent.

The deal comes at a time when U.S. energy firms are pumping in money to develop facilities in gas-rich states like Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Ohio as the country prepares to become the world's top natural gas exporter.

EQT said it would be able to drill longer horizontal wells in Pennsylvania after the deal as most of the acquired acreage is next to where EQT already drills or owns land.

"EQT is a decade behind in fracking technology used by industry leaders in Marcellus/Utica," said Dallas Salazar, CEO of energy consulting firm Atlas Consulting. "EQT needs a lot - and Rice offers a lot of what it needs."

EQT has been buying acreage in the Marcellus shale field - where gas is among the cheapest in the country. Most recently it picked up 53,400 acres in the field from Stone Energy Corp.

EQT said the acquisition would increase its 2017 average sales volume by 1.3 billion cubic feet equivalent per day (bcfe/d) and its core acres in the Marcellus field by 187,000 to 670,000.

The deal would also give the company access to Rice Energy's midstream assets, including a 92 percent interest in Rice Midstream GP Holdings. EQT will take on about $1.5 billion in debt.

Rice Energy shareholders will receive $5.30 per share in cash and 0.37 EQT shares for each share they hold, EQT said.

The offer translates to a price of $27.05 per Rice Energy share, representing a premium of 37.4 percent to the stock's Friday closing price, according to Reuters calculations.

Citigroup was EQT's financial adviser, while Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz were its legal advisers. Barclays Capital Inc was Rice Energy's financial adviser and Vinson & Elkins LLP its legal adviser.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-rice-enrgy-m-a-eqt-corp-idUSKBN19A1LI

Study: Oil, Gas Drilling Connected to Pollution, Earthquakes

HOUSTON (AP) — A new study by a nonprofit science organization says oil and gas drilling in Texas is linked to pollution and earthquakes.

The Academy of Medicine, Engineering and Science of Texas study found drilling for oil and gas in shale rock pollutes the air, erodes soil and contaminates water, while the disposal of millions of gallons of wastewater causes earthquakes, the Houston Chronicle (http://bit.ly/2siuByn ) reported.

The study also found that the shale oil boom has degraded natural resources, overwhelmed small communities and increased the frequency and severity of traffic collisions as workers rush to oil fields with their equipment.

The group began its analysis of the environmental and social impacts of drilling and hydraulic fracturing two years ago. It created a task force of attorneys, geologists, seismologists and engineers, including representatives from oil companies and an environmental group. The group reviewed and analyzed hundreds of academic studies, many about Texas oil and gas operations.

The study found fracking is spreading rapidly across Texas. The technique is used by the energy industry to extract oil and gas from rock by injecting high-pressure mixtures of water, sand or gravel and chemicals.

"We're seeing these activities in places we haven't seen before," said Marilu Hastings, vice president of sustainability programs for the Cynthia and George Mitchell Foundation, which funded a portion of the research. "And we're seeing them at an increasing scale, pace and intensity."

The report calls for the state to improve monitoring and collecting data about the environmental impacts of shale drilling and fracking.

"I'm a seismologist," said Brian Stump, a professor at Southern Methodist University and member of the task force. "But this shale gas development is critically important to a state like Texas because of its economy, and important internationally because of its energy resources. Understanding the good and bad implications helps us know what's right and what to improve."

https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/texas/articles/2017-06-19/study-oil-gas-drilling-connected-to-pollution-earthquakes

FUTURE OF TRANSPORTATION: LYFT'S NEW SHUTTLE SERVICE SOUNDS JUST LIKE A CITY BUS

On June 6, Stefan Heck posted a joke about Silicon Valley's self-absorbed mission to disrupt the world, even where it may not need disrupting.

Heck may have been referring to the Lyft Shuttle, which was unveiled earlier this year and is undergoing beta testing in San Francisco and Chicago. The way the service is broken down on the ride-sharing app's website reads almost like a parody of the Silicon Valley thinking to which Heck's tweet refers.

"Walk to stop. Hop in. Hop out. Walk to destination," the site explains, before providing a more detailed breakdown of how users can "find their route," then "walk to your pickup stop," then "ride along the designated route" and, finally, "walk to your destination."

On Monday, Lifehacker reviewed Lyft Shuttle. Here's how the service is described:

I take Lyft or Lyft Line a couple times a week, usually because I’m traveling with other people and it’s the same or cheaper (and much, much cleaner, faster, and more pleasant) than taking public transportation. But Lyfts can add up fast and Lyft Line, while less expensive, can take you out of your way and make your travel time much longer.

Lyft Shuttle addresses both those issues by having you walk to a nearby pick up spot, get in a shared car that follows a pre-designated route, and drops you (and everyone else) off at the same stop. So, basically, you share a ride with other people (most of the time) so your ride price is lower, but you know exactly how long the ride will take because you’re on a pre-designated route.

Drawbacks: the shuttle service is only available during commute hours and you’re only picked up and dropped off in certain spots. That said, the routes currently offered (shown in the map below) go to most neighborhoods that I visit and I live in downtown San Francisco so there are plenty of stops near me. If you have a similar situation if and when Lyft Shuttle comes to your city, this is a convenient—and more affordable—alternative.

The review was positive, and did not acknowledge the similarities to a certain publicly funded transportation service that was not invented by Lyft (although Lifehacker's sister site, Jalopnik, did so later on Monday).

Heather Yamada-Hosley, who reviewed the service for Lifehacker, writes in the comments to her post about how public transportation in San Francisco is "dirty, slow, crowded, and increasingly dangerous," making Lyft Shuttle a valuable resource. Others wrote that they live in areas with no accessible public transportation lines, or in places where they do not have to walk as far to get to or from a Lyft Shuttle as they would to a bus or train stop.

Some have accused these Lyft Shuttle defenders as simply justifying various degrees of revulsion to the poor. The reality is probably somewhere in between.

Matthew Yglesias‏'s first tweet sums up the issue: The Lyft Shuttle isn't a bad idea, but it also isn't anything new. Though it may be convenient for some people living in certain cities, privatizing a public service that has been in place for years isn't "innovative" or "disruptive" or "groundbreaking" so much as it is a way for Lyft to make money and expand its influence.

http://www.newsweek.com/lyft-shuttle-bus-627360

Oil Prices Hit Seven-Month Lows As Global Oversupply Persists

Oil prices fell to seven-month lows on June 20 after news of increases in supply by several key producers, a trend that has undermined attempts by OPEC and others to support the market through reduced output.

Benchmark Brent dropped $1.29 to a low of $45.62 a barrel (bbl), its weakest since Nov. 15, two weeks before OPEC and other producers agreed to cut output by 1.8 million bbl/d for six months from January.

Brent was trading around $45.81, down $1.10, by 7:25 a.m. CT (12:25 GMT).

West Texas Intermediate crude futures contract for July, due to expire later on June 20, fell $1.27 to $42.93, its lowest since Nov. 14, before recovering to around $43.10.

Both benchmarks are down more than 15% since late May when OPEC, Russia and other producers extended limits on output until the end of March 2018.

"At the moment sentiment is bearish and traders seem happy to keep selling into every rally," said Fawad Razaqzada, financial markets technical analyst at Forex.com.

OPEC supplies jumped in May as output recovered in Libya and Nigeria, both exempt from the production reduction agreement.

Libya's oil production rose more than 50,000 bbl/d to 885,000 bbl/d after the state oil company settled a dispute with Germany's Wintershall AG, a Libyan source told Reuters.

Nigerian oil supply is also rising. Exports of Nigeria's Bonny Light crude are set to reach 226,000 bbl/d in August, up from 164,000 bbl/d in July, loading programs show.

"The increasing August export program in Nigeria and the jump in Libyan oil output should pressure oil prices further in the short term," said Tamas Varga, senior analyst at London brokerage PVM Oil Associates.

"If we get bearish U.S. oil statistics this week, we could see a test of $45 on Brent," Varga said.

U.S. oil production has been rising quickly this year, feeding the global glut. Data on June 16 showed a record 22nd consecutive week of increases in U.S. oil drilling rigs.

"Recent data points are not encouraging," Morgan Stanley analysts said in a note to clients. "Identifiable oil inventories—both crude and product in the OECD, China and selected other non-OECD countries—increased at a rate of [about] 1 [million bbl/d] in first quarter."

But Saudi Arabia Energy Minister Khalid al-Falih said the oil market is heading in the right direction and just needs time to rebalance, the London-based newspaper Asharq al-Awsat reported on June 19.

http://www.oilandgasinvestor.com/oil-prices-hit-seven-month-lows-global-oversupply-persists-1634236#p=full

Eni signs agreement for oil and gas feasibility studies in Iran

• Eni (NYSE:E) signs a memorandum of understanding with Iran to carry out feasibility studies on the development of oil and gas fields in the country.
  
• Iran's oil ministry says the provisional agreement calls for studies on the Kish gas field in the Persian Gulf and the third phase of the Darkhovin oil field in southern Iran within six months.
  
• Government officials point to the deal as the latest sign that global companies are not deterred from investing in Iran despite tensions between the country and Saudi Arabia.
  
  https://seekingalpha.com/news/3274465-eni-signs-agreement-oil-gas-feasibility-studies-iran

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) --An excessive heat warning is in effect through Thursday evening as we reach record-breaking temperatures.

Some constructions crews wrap up around 3:30 p.m., which is before the city hits the highest temperature of the day. But Action News was out at 10 a.m., and they were already breaking a sweat.

Workers were trying to keep cool in triple-digit temperatures at the construction site in Downtown Fresno. Laborers are working toward repaving a parking lot, and they'll be at the site until September - through the hottest months of the year.

"Well, it's not fun," worker Brantley Pierce said.

To prevent overheating his body, one worker says he puts water on a rag around his neck to keep it cool.

"I got this rag and take a break every 30 minutes," Pierce said. "Go sit under some shade for about 10 minutes and then get back to it."

The construction company owner was on site overseeing the project and making sure his workers have what they need to be out in these conditions.

"We just make sure they have plenty to drink, they have to keep hydrated," owner Jack Pierce explained. "We make sure they have shade. Anyone who gets too tired, we take them to the shade."

Cal/OSHA protects workers from health and safety hazards and says their three goals for workers are water, rest, and shade. Once temperatures reach 95 degrees or higher, they say employers of outside workers must follow high heat procedures.

"Shade has to be provided when temperatures reach 80 degrees or above, water must be free, cool, portable and readily accessible to all workers," Paola Laverde with Cal/OSHA said.

By law, every four hours every worker must be allowed a 10-minute break in hot conditions and agriculture workers are given a 10-minute break every two hours.

But any worker in hot temperatures can request to take a cool down break in the shade for at least five minutes, and can't be rushed back to work.

At a home construction site, an insulation installer said he drinks lots of water to stay cool and makes sure to go in what they call 'cool zones,' which is usually the garage of a house but says he'll go anywhere with shade.

"Summer is usually the busiest and hottest time, so it's rough but you just gotta push through," Lynn Ayala said.

Cal/OSHA says employers and coworkers need to watch out for each other and to be aware of heat illness symptoms which can include fainting spells or disorientation.

http://abc30.com/weather/fresno-construction-crews-bearing-brunt-of-record-breaking-heat/2119768/

Solar power emerges where oil and gas once dominated

When oil prices tanked two years ago, hundreds of Pecos County workers lost jobs working at oil and gas companies in the prolific Permian basin. Last year, the rural county lost around 20 percent of its $2.5 billion tax value.

But the unemployed residents weren't out of work for long. Most of the 300 to 400 oil field workers found jobs installing solar panels beneath the hot and abundant West Texas sun.

Pecos now has five operational solar farms, large projects that meet the definition of utility-scale - having the capacity to generate at lease 1 megawatt, enough to power about 200 houses on a hot Texas day.

All told, the projects, including two likely to get underway within the next few years, are expected to add hundreds of millions of dollars to the tax base of the county, where solar panels stand on the same property as gas flares and drilling rigs.

"It's a great marriage," said Doug May, the executive director of the Fort Stockton Economic Development Council in the county.

Pecos County, which has only three people in each of its 5,000 square miles, has become a hub for utility-scale solar power. Across the nation, solar farms are poised to become a boon for rural economies that have been hard hit by the decline of industries such as agriculture, manufacturing and coal, as well as the boom-and-bust cycles of oil and gas.

In North Carolina, for instance, farmers lease fallow land to solar panel companies; in West Texas, counties like Pecos, once reliant on oil and gas extraction, are diversifying through solar and wind power.

Utility-scale projects are eligible for a state tax abatement - up to 80 percent for 10 years - an incentive that has drawn projects to places like Pecos County. Texas' utility-scale installations, at around 783 megawatts, are expected to double in Texas this year, according to the Solar Energy Industries Association, a national trade group.

Beyond abundant sunshine, the county's other draws are its many transmission lines that feed into the electric grid that serves the state's population centers. More transmission lines are expected to be added in 2019 and 2020, likely driving another burst of solar installations, May said.

If that happens, solar power will exceed the county's 700 megawatts of wind energy. In addition, solar companies will employ locals even as the price of oil remains stubbornly below $50 a barrel.

"It has basically helped to compensate for the boom and bust cycle," said Colin Meehan, the director of regulatory and public affairs for Houston-based First Solar, which has two solar farms in Pecos. "They see it as just another source of revenue."

Pecos is a model of how rural counties can benefit from renewable energy, said Helen Brauner, the director of origination strategy for 7x Energy, an Austin-based utility-scale solar company. In Austin on Tuesday, Brauner and other solar executives gathered at a conference hosted by the Solar Energy Industries Association.

"The typical 100-megawatt solar project should give the county about $30 million in property tax revenue" over the duration of the project, Brauner said.

The conference attendance nearly doubled this year to more than 400, a sign that Texas is primed for more investment in solar, conference organizers said.

Nonetheless, the growth of utility-scale solar in Texas suffered a setback in April of last year when Sun-Edison, the world's largest renewable energy developer, filed for bankruptcy, delaying two major projects.

In September, Houston-based NRG Energy bought one the projects, the 154-megawatt Buckthorn solar farm in Pecos County. When the project is done next year, its sole customer will be Georgetown, a city of about 60,000 north of Austin.

http://www.houstonchronicle.com/business/article/Solar-power-emerges-where-oil-and-gas-once-11217679.php

Wi-Fi Alliance introduces a certification program for new smart home construction

Imagine buying a brand-new home and needing to install your own electrical and plumbing infrastructure. That’s what it’s like today when it comes to home networking. It’s a DIY affair in which you need to provide your own equipment and figure out the best place to set it up. That could become a thing of the past thanks to the Wi-Fi Alliance’s new Wi-Fi Certified Home Design program.

Homebuilders participating in the Wi-Fi Certified Home Design program will follow Wi-Fi deployment guidelines to determine the optimal locations for wireless access point (APs). The goal is to eliminate dead spots and provide coverage everywhere inside the home—including the garage—as well as in outside areas such as the patio.

Professional design and installation while the home is being constructed should deliver optimal performance for the many wireless devices required to build a modern smart home. Even if other protocols—such as Z-Wave, ZigBee, Bluetooth, or Thread—are in use, Wi-Fi is the glue that holds everything together and provides a bridge for smart home devices to reach the internet.

The first Wi-Fi Certified homes

Homebuilder Lennar will be the first company to offer Wi-Fi Certified Homes for sale in July. The company intends to offer them across its entire national footprint by the end of 2017.

“Wi-Fi is no longer an option or an upgrade, but a key piece of new home construction,” said Lennar Ventures president David J. Kaiserman. “Wi-Fi Home Design brings new deployment standards to residential Wi-Fi networks that enable Lennar to provide a reliable and secure Wi-Fi network experience to homebuyers, offering convenience from equipment purchase and installation decisions and making it easier to bring more connected devices into the homes.”

Lennar’s homes will feature Ruckus Unleashed APs, Samsung SmartThings connected-home hubs, and voice control via Amazon Echos. The company will also offer smart home products from Honeywell (smart thermostats), Ring (video doorbells), Kwikset and Baldwin (smart entry locks), Lutron (lighting control), and Sonos (wireless speakers).

During its design process, Lennar says each new home’s floorplan is analyzed and mapped for Wi-Fi signal strength and quality. The process also takes building materials and other factors that impact connectivity into account.

The impact on you at home: This certification program makes a whole lot of sense, even if it impacts relatively few homebuyers in its early days. The Wi-Fi Alliance has a long history of certifying wireless networking products for interoperability, and it’s very good at it. Home networking will remain a DIY affair for the vast majority of us for many years to come, but as important as it is to daily life, there’s no reason that the infrastructure shouldn’t be as ubiquitous—and as standardized—as a home’s electrical and plumbing systems.

http://www.techhive.com/article/3200747/connected-home/wi-fi-alliance-introduces-wi-fi-certified-homes.html

EPA Extends Delay Of Methane Rule For Oil, Gas Industry

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said June 13 it would propose a two-year stay of the previous administration's oil and gas industry methane emissions standards while the agency reconsiders the regulation.

The move would extend the 90-day administrative stay announced on May 31 of the 2016 New Source Performance Standards for the oil and gas industry, which require companies to capture leaking emissions, obtain engineer certifications and install leak detection devices that the EPA had announced.

"Under the proposal, sources would not need to comply with these requirements while the stay is in effect," the EPA said in a press release.

http://www.oilandgasinvestor.com/epa-extends-delay-methane-rule-oil-gas-industry-1627611

Mighty machines celebrated at Museum of Alaska Transportation

"It was Mike Mulligan and Mary Anne and some others who cut through the high mountains so that trains could go through."

This line from the book "Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel," written by Virginia Lee Burton in 1939 could have been set in Alaska, when parts of our wilderness environment were on the cusp of mechanized assistance to settle the Last Frontier.

Planes, trains and automobiles were already in place, along with requisite dog sleds and snowshoes, but as the nation struggled to survive a Great Depression and a world war loomed, Alaska and a long roster of machines would grow to prominence.

Today, as then, those roaring metal beasts that fly, float or grind their way over and through our landscape are just as fascinating to 21st-century children. And there's a place in Wasilla that shows them off.

Since 1992, the Museum of Alaska Transportation and Industry has been a fixture of the Valley at its 20-acre compound along the Parks Highway. I found out, though, many of the exhibits were initially part of the Alaska Purchase centennial celebrations in 1967 — along with what was billed as a Centennial Train, a moving museum of sorts. Those who have been in Southcentral a while may remember the whole thing staged at the Alaska State Fairgrounds in Palmer during the 1980s, when a band of dedicated volunteers started thinking about a permanent museum home.

Situated along active tracks used by the Alaska Railroad, the Museum of Alaska Transportation Industry (or MATI, as members and staff refer to it) is both a real-time and historical look into the partnership between machine and man (or woman). If something helped people go somewhere or do something and was utilized in Alaska between 1920 and the 1970s, it's here, sitting among the dandelions and green grass on the museum's vast property.

We discovered it one summer when our son was about 4 and I had spied a listing for the museum in the newspaper. "Come visit us," it said.

So we did. And we've been fans ever since.

“A place of imagination and wonder”

The museum is not a fancy place, but that's part of the charm and attractiveness to families. Sherry Jackson, museum executive director, feels like her job is to ensure the artifacts from Alaska's past have their own future through the eyes of kids.

"There is so much room to freely explore and discover things," she told me after we spent a morning showing a bunch of busy boys nearly every machine on the campus. "The museum also provides many discussion points to expand kids' sense of imagination and wonder."

This part was true enough for our crowd. The boys, ranging in age from 6 to 12, responded to their first views of the museum property with wide eyes and utterings such as, "Whoa, what is that?" as they pressed noses to the chain link fence at the entrance, anxious to explore. For children used to fast-moving lifestyles, a return to a slower way of going places can be a valuable tool for the concept of quality over quickness.

Tractors and farm equipment rest in a row along the north side of the circular driveway, and a collection of civilian and military aircraft are parked to the south. In between is a gear junkie's mecca, albeit with a bit of rust and fading paint. But kids don't care.

The first few times we visited back when our son was a toddler and only interested in jumping on every seat he could find, we made quick work of the small indoor section in favor of the enormous expanse of outside space, filled to the fence lines with things that once moved people, dirt, or supplies around Alaska. But it's important to note that Jackson, in her tenure as director, has done an impressive job making over the interior of the museum in the hope it will provide a bit of educational background before kids venture outside.

President Warren G. Harding's staff car used during his visit to Alaska in 1923? It's here, along with an explanation of why the president thought it important to visit this remote territory.

How about a hang glider that flew from Denali in the 1970s, piloted by a thrill-seeking climber? That's hanging from the ceiling.

Older kids will likely spend more time reading about the history of Alaska transportation, from the arrival of colonists in the 1930s to the construction of the Alaska Highway shortly thereafter, and the building of the trans-Alaska pipeline, each an economic decision that shaped the future of the territory and state.

Learning by doing

Jackson and I discussed the unique "hands-on" tradition at MATI while the kids ran amok, shouting at each new discovery and bouncing from trains to buses to ancient snowmachines. One of the reasons kids find such joy at the museum, she said, was because museum staff and volunteers work hard to encourage their natural sense of curiosity.

"Kids hear so often not to touch things at a museum, but at a place like this, they need to touch to learn how everything works," she said.

The kids hopped on the back of a 1950s fire truck, curious about the long rubber hoses that rode atop the roof.

"Any guesses why the back bumper is so wide?" I asked them. Firefighters often stood along the back bench and hung on to a bar overhead while racing to a fire. I remember seeing such a scene myself, and I told them so.

Over the course of an hour, each child shifted gears, pumped imaginary brakes, and, in one case, pretended to drive us all to school in a little yellow school bus used by local youngsters in the tiny community of Chitina. At each vehicle, Jackson had a story of the people who made their living in tandem with the machine. Our visit made Alaska come alive, decade by decade.

When they were finally finished, we moved out front to the museum's sunny lawn for more playtime on the equipment set out just for that purpose, including a section of the trans-Alaska pipeline perfect in a game of hide-and-seek. Jackson says families often come to the museum for picnics, making a day of it, and I could see why.

Machines have come a long way since Mike Mulligan first fired up Mary Anne the steam shovel, remembering the history is important as we move into a technological age of building bigger, faster, more advanced machinery. May our children never forget the engines that got us there.

Museum of Alaska Transportation and Industry

*Location: 3800 W. Museum Drive, Wasilla, along the Parks Highway

*Hours: Open seven days a week Mother's Day to Labor Day, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.

*Admission: Adults $8, children ages 3-17 $5, families $18, active military free with ID. An annual family membership is available for $35

https://www.adn.com/outdoors-adventure/2017/06/12/mighty-machines-celebrated-at-museum-of-alaska-transportation/